Another funny directions story

[annandatje]

I suffer from lifelong navigational disability including the ability to determine cardinal and ordinal directions at any point unless there are visual clues.  I am far from stupid and worked hard to find my way around.  Yes, it has been hurtful when people without navigational disability question me or worse yet, ridicule me when I can’t tell which way is north.  I managed to do lots of hiking and backpacking sticking to trails.  Once I used a USGS quad map when a small group of us did off trail hiking in Smokies.  When I moved to current city, I bought a street atlas, cut and connected the pages on various poster boards and spent couple weeks driving around area with my poster board maps.  One co-worker was so obnoxious about it that I uttered my first ever obscenity at work but he and his sidekicks backed off.  
 

it is not helpful to me when GPS tells me to N S E or W instead of right or left.

Edited May 7 by annandatje

[Scarlett]

26 minutes ago, annandatje said:

I suffer from lifelong navigational disability including the ability to determine cardinal and ordinal directions at any point unless there are visual clues.  I am far from stupid and worked hard to find my way around.  Yes, it has been hurtful when people without navigational disability question me or worse yet, ridicule me when I can’t tell which way is north.  I managed to do lots of hiking and backpacking sticking to trails.  Once I used a USGS quad map when a small group of us did off trail hiking in Smokies.  When I moved to current city, I bought a street atlas, cut and connected the pages on various poster boards and spent couple weeks driving around area with my poster board maps.  One co-worker was so obnoxious about it that I uttered my first ever obscenity at work but he and his sidekicks backed off.  
 

it is not helpful to me when GPS tells me to N S E or W instead of right or left.

I admire your efforts to figure it out.

This girl did not have the same issue. She had just not connected the dots. 
 

And just to repeat myself I was not making fun of her nor do I think I am superior. I did think it would be nice if she realizes which direction is north on the mountain where she works and gives directions to customers. 

[SKL]

I do think it is valuable for a person in the tourism/hospitality industry to be able to answer the question "which way is north."

I'm surprised at how much of a trigger this apparently is for some people.

Despite being taught (including by doing specific scout badge work on it), I would not be surprised if at least one of my kids doesn't know how to find North.  I'm not going to lose sleep over it though.

[wintermom]

7 minutes ago, SKL said:

I do think it is valuable for a person in the tourism/hospitality industry to be able to answer the question "which way is north."

I'm surprised at how much of a trigger this apparently is for some people.

Despite being taught (including by doing specific scout badge work on it), I would not be surprised if at least one of my kids doesn't know how to find North.  I'm not going to lose sleep over it though.

I think this is a cultural difference. It would not occur to me to ask a restaurant employee about trails and compass directions, even if they did happen to be in a state park. I've visited a few state parks, and there are often visitor centres to provide accurate information - and they are trained to know about trail conditions, etc. 

Edited May 7 by wintermom

[Scarlett]

1 minute ago, wintermom said:

I think this is a cultural difference. It would not occur to me to ask a restaurant employee about trails and compass directions, even if they did happen to be in a state park. I've visited a few state parks, and there are often visitor centres to provide accurate information - and they are trained to know about trail conditions, etc. 

I probably would not have asked her either if she had not been volunteering all sorts of information about the park and the trails. She took our map and gave us very detailed instructions about various things to do so I don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask her which way is north. And remember in the end she did indeed really know which way north is. Because she knew which way was west. And she knew which way was east.

[wintermom]

11 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

I probably would not have asked her either if she had not been volunteering all sorts of information about the park and the trails. She took our map and gave us very detailed instructions about various things to do so I don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask her which way is north. And remember in the end she did indeed really know which way north is. Because she knew which way was west. And she knew which way was east.

As soon as you asked her where the sunset, then you could figure out where north was. So why do the big 'teachable moment' and potentially really embarrassing her? 

[Scarlett]

15 minutes ago, wintermom said:

As soon as you asked her where the sunset, then you could figure out where north was. So why do the big 'teachable moment' and potentially really embarrassing her? 

So she would know. Why do you keep harping on how wrong I was to give a stranger some info she might need. Why is that so offensive? I would not be offended if a stranger gave me some info I did not know. I would be like this young lady was and say oh thank you. 
You seem determined to make me out to be some villain in some small story I told about my weekend.

[Scarlett]

I am almost 59 years old. About six months ago a lady approached me at the gas station and showed me the little slot to hold my gas cap. I was not embarrassed. In fact every time I get fuel I think of her and how happy I am to know this little tidbit. I certainly would not die not knowing it. But why get all offended because someone wanted to tell me something they knew that I did not.

 

 

[TexasProud]

4 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

So she would know. Why do you keep harping on how wrong I was to give a stranger some info she might need. Why is that so offensive? I would not be offended if a stranger gave me some info I did not know. I would be like this young lady was and say oh thank you. 
You seem determined to make me out to be some villain in some small story I told about my weekend.

We are just trying to point out that she may not have taken it as kindly as you think she did. 

 

Just now, Scarlett said:

I am almost 59 years old. About six months ago a lady approached me at the gas station and showed me the little slot to hold my gas cap. I was not embarrassed. In fact every time I get fuel I think of her and how happy I am to know this little tidbit. I certainly would not die not knowing it. But why get all offended because someone wanted to tell me something they knew that I did not.

 

 

Because it would prove I am stupid. 

[Scarlett]

21 minutes ago, TexasProud said:

We are just trying to point out that she may not have taken it as kindly as you think she did. 

 

Because it would prove I am stupid. 

Do you think I am stupid?

[wintermom]

1 hour ago, Scarlett said:

So she would know. Why do you keep harping on how wrong I was to give a stranger some info she might need. Why is that so offensive? I would not be offended if a stranger gave me some info I did not know. I would be like this young lady was and say oh thank you. 
You seem determined to make me out to be some villain in some small story I told about my weekend.

No, you aren't thanking any of us who are trying to say that perhaps you weren't necessarily the heroine in your small story. 

[Indigo Blue]

This is getting silly. We can’t all know everything. That doesn’t mean someone is stupid. I can’t do and don’t know lots of things. I still consider myself to have common sense and don’t believe that I am stupid. 

[Scarlett]

3 minutes ago, wintermom said:

No, you aren't thanking any of us who are trying to say that perhaps you weren't necessarily the heroine in your small story. 

One is your opinion.  Projection I would suggest.  
 

Which direction is  north is a fact.  

You have no idea what the young lady thought .  Don’t you think I would know more than you how the interaction went since I was there?  

[Scarlett]

1 hour ago, TexasProud said:

We are just trying to point out that she may not have taken it as kindly as you think she did. 

 

Because it would prove I am stupid. 

In case my point was lost, no that would not prove you are stupid.  

[Indigo Blue]

1 hour ago, Scarlett said:

I am almost 59 years old. About six months ago a lady approached me at the gas station and showed me the little slot to hold my gas cap. I was not embarrassed. In fact every time I get fuel I think of her and how happy I am to know this little tidbit. I certainly would not die not knowing it. But why get all offended because someone wanted to tell me something they knew that I did not.

 

 

I did not know this. Now I want to know if my car has that cap holder. 

[Scarlett]

3 minutes ago, Indigo Blue said:

I did not know this. Now I want to know if my car has that cap holder. 

I know right!  I was so excited to learn this.  Most newer vehicles don’t even have a gas cap but for those of us with older vehicles it is a cool thing to know.  

[TexasProud]

1 hour ago, Scarlett said:

Do you think I am stupid?

No, but I would feel stupid if the woman said that to me and would literally scream at myself, "You are so dumb..." on the way to my destination from the gas station. 

[Scarlett]

1 minute ago, TexasProud said:

No, but I would feel stupid if the woman said that to me and would literally scream at myself, "You are so dumb..." on the way to my destination from the gas station. 

Well then I can certainly see why you think I was so wrong to have a conversation with a young server.  Do you think your method of coping is healthy?

It never one time occurred to me I was stupid for not knowing the gas cap thing.  I did briefly wonder how I managed to never be taught that…..but I was more excited to learn the thing.  

[SKL]

2 hours ago, TexasProud said:

Because it would prove I am stupid. 

OK but the only way to actually be stupid is to fight against learning from others.

[SKL]

57 minutes ago, TexasProud said:

No, but I would feel stupid if the woman said that to me and would literally scream at myself, "You are so dumb..." on the way to my destination from the gas station. 

This would not be that lady's fault though.  It does not make the lady's helpful information unkind.

[The Governess]

I thought it was funny. But then, I teach medieval lit and history to high schoolers… and we have lamented the fact that our modern society has lost a lot of knowledge about the seasons, positions of the sun, telling time without a clock, the visible night sky…. I was even thinking of adding in a practical lesson on this next year.